This invention relates to keyboards for typewriters and other information input devices in which keys are depressed to cause the recording of individual letters, numbers and other symbols and to effect functional operation of the input device.
The standard typewriter keyboard, known as qwerty from the keys along the row above the centre row reading from the left has been in use for many years, but is not entirely satisfactory for high speed typing because frequently used letters are operated by weaker fingers or fingers in awkward positions, and frequently occurring consecutive letters are operated by the same finger which must move from one key to the next between operating the letters. For this reason, normal typing speeds do not approach dictation speeds of, say, 100 wpm.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,929,216 and 3,945,482 disclose alternative designs of keyboards in which the letters and numbers are arranged in a different manner from the standard qwerty keyboard. Those patents disclose keys for the right and left hand which are separated from each other so that the typist can have the forearms extending parallel to each other with the fingers resting at their normal positions on the keys rather than inclined towards each other as with the standard keyboard. These prior art keyboards also disclose keys for depression by the thumbs for operating letters as well as the functional keys such as the space bar on the conventional keyboard. Between the spaced sets of keys for the two hands are arranged special code keys.
It is an object of the invention to provide an improved keyboard layout in which the keys are arranged so that the most frequently used symbols are operated by the strongest fingers, and the most frequently occurring consecutive symbols are operated by different fingers in order to provide high speed operation.